Business: Boom & Bedlam

"To travel by plane, a passenger must now sacrifice his comfort, his
sleep, and often his baggage. He must endure inconveniences that rise
to the level of punishment. And sometimes he finds he could have got
there faster by train."

So said FORTUNE magazine this week, after a long hard look at the
nation's airlines (What's Wrong with the Airlines). Except for scenery
and safety, and the latter is an increasingly big "question mark,"
FORTUNE found nearly every phase of air travel in a mess. Examples:

Reservations and waiting lists have become a joke in many places, simply
because it is much easier...